Eligibility and Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy

SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS FOR FINANCIAL AID

In accordance with Federal and State regulations, to qualify for and receive Financial Aid, students are required to make progress toward completion of their educational goals to continue to receive Financial Aid.

Eligibility

To become eligible to receive financial aid at Peralta Community College District (PCCD), students must submit a completed Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to the Department of Education to establish eligibility, complete a Financial Aid File, and adhere to the following requirements:

Enroll in a Title IV eligible program for the purpose of completing an Associate Degree, an eligible certificate program, or transfer requirements.

Maintain a Peralta Community College District cumulative GPA of 2.0 or above.

Complete 66.6% of the total number of units attempted each semester at PCCD, regardless of if financial aid was received.

Complete an educational program within the maximum timeframe (150%) of the published program’s required units at PCCD.

Pace of Progression:

Student must complete 66.6% of units attempted each semester in order to complete their program within the maximum time frame, or 150%. A guideline to assist you is as follows:

PLEASE NOTE:

Attempted units are all units/classes in which the student was enrolled through census week. Therefore some W’s may be included in the “attempted unit” total.

Units Attempted

Must Complete

Units Attempted

Must Complete

0.5

0.5

14

9.5

1

1

14.5

10

1.5

1

15

10

2

1.5

15.5

10.5

2.5

2

16

11

3

2

16.5

11

3.5

2.5

17

11.5

4

3

17.5

12

4.5

3

18

12

5

3.5

18.5

12.5

5.5

4

19

13

6

4

19.5

13

6.5

4.5

20

13.5

7

5

20.5

14

7.5

5

21

14

8

5.5

21.5

14.5

8.5

6

22

15

9

6

22.5

15

9.5

6.5

23

15.5

10

7

23.5

16

10.5

7

24

16

11

7.5

24.5

16.5

11.5

8

25

16.5

12

8

25.5

17

12.5

8.5

26

17.5

13

9

26.5

17.5

13.5

9

The Financial Aid Office will review each student’s record at the end of each academic semester. Students who do not meet Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) requirements at the end of their first semester will be notified by the Financial Aid Office that they have been placed in Financial Aid Warning status. If while on Financial Aid Warning Status, students fail to meet the SAP standards for the second time they will place on Financial Aid Disqualification Status and all aid for the term will be cancelled. (With the exception of the BOG Fee Waiver). Students may reinstate eligibility by complying with Satisfactory Academic Progress Standards in a term without receiving Financial Aid.

Students should complete their educational objective within a maximum time frame of 150%, or 90 attempted semester units for a standard two-year program. Programs shorter than two (2) years will be monitored for completion of the same 150% unit maximum time frame. Note: All completed and accepted transfer units are also counted in the 90 units attempted when used toward a degree or certificate at a Peralta College.

Students receiving financial aid must maintain a cumulative 2.00 grade point average (GPA).

Grades of “W”, “F”, “FW”, “CR”, ”NC”, ”P”, ”NP” and “I” will be monitored and included toward calculation of the 150% unit maximum time frame.

The completion of a course grade of “I” (Incomplete) will not be included for purposes of determining enrollment status in a subsequent term.

A student may repeat a course one time for which a grade of “D” or higher is received.

A student may repeat a course for which an earned grade of “F” or “W” is received in order to achieve a passing grade.

Instructors are strongly urged to use the “FW” grade for students who fail due to late term withdrawal.

A student with a grade of “F” who is being processed for payment by the Financial Aid Office may be required by the financial aid office to provide documentation from the grading instructor that the grade was earned by the student. The student must have attended class for the term and earned a failing grade by such measure as determined by instruction that qualifies a grade of “F”.

A student may repeat but not exceed the allowed number of repeats for courses listed in the class schedule. These repeated classes will be included in the student’s enrollment status and a grade for each class must be received. Financial aid payments will not be issued for unauthorized repeated coursework, even if financial aid was not paid for the class the first time it was repeated.

A student who uses transfer credits from college(s) outside the Peralta District must submit transcript(s) for evaluation by an academic counselor or Admissions and Records Office. Those units will be included in the calculation of the 150% program maximum time frame.

The pace of a student’s program completion will be evaluated when a student has reached 60 attempted units. If it is determined by the financial aid office that the student will be unable to complete his/her program of study within the maximum time frame allowed, all financial aid will be terminated.

Students with a Baccalaureate (Bachelor’s) or other graduate degree are considered to have surpassed the maximum time frame and will be required to complete a financial aid petition/appeal to be considered for a student loan. Note that filing an appeal may not qualify a student for financial aid eligibility. The decision of the college on appeals is FINAL and may not be contested.

A student may reinstate eligibility for financial aid by complying with Satisfactory Academic Progress standards in a term without receiving financial aid.

A student may lose eligibility for financial aid by NOT complying with Satisfactory Academic Progress standards in a term the student did not receive financial aid.

Students may also remove deficiencies for prior academic years during the Summer session without receiving financial aid. Students must notify the Financial Aid Office when this option is used.

REMEDIAL COURSEWORK

If a student receives financial aid for remedial coursework, and completes one year or 30 units, no further aid will be paid for remedial study. The student may continue to enroll in remedial classes, but financial aid payments will be calculated only for degree-applicable coursework. Satisfactory academic progress is monitored each term.

ESL COURSEWORK

Students who enroll in excessive ESL coursework (over 45 units) without enrolling in classes leading toward their stated educational major or goal will be notified by the Financial Aid Office and requested to meet with an academic counselor to determine proficiency to enroll in at least one class leading toward the declared major. ESL students will be strongly urged to en­roll in coursework that will assist them in completing their educational goal.

ESL and remedial coursework will count toward the 2.0 GPA and 67% units completion requirements (SAP Standard). However, all ESL and 30 units of Remedial coursework will be subtracted in the calculation of the maximum time frame allowed.

APPEAL PROCEDURES

A student may appeal for failure to meet the GPA standard, the term unit requirement, or pace of progression.

The appeal form can be picked up from your home campus financial aid office. The student is responsible for providing sufficient information in the written statement to substantiate the existence of extenuating circumstances. Additionally, the student statement must address what steps he/she has and will take to prevent a similar circumstance in the future. The student must meet with an academic counselor to complete a full Student Education Plan (SEP) outlining the program of study and the courses required to complete the program of study.

An appeals committee will review the appeal and make a decision on whether to approve or deny the financial aid appeal request. The student will be notified of the decision by email and/or formal letter. The appeal process is final and cannot be appealed.

Students are subject to a two appeal limit. However, special exceptions can be made by the financial aid supervisors at each college on a case-by-case basis to allow additional appeals beyond two.

FINANCIAL AID REPEAT COURSE POLICY

Effective July 1, 2011, the Department of Education required colleges to limit how many times students can repeat a course and still receive financial aid for that course. Once a student earns a passing grade for a course that student can only repeat the course one more time and still receive financial aid. A passing grade is defined by the college as a D or better. If a student enrolls in a previously passed course for a third time, this course will not count for financial aid purposes. The policy allows a student to receive financial aid under the following situations:

To repeat any failed or withdrawn course until a passing grade is received.

To repeat one time any course in which you previously received a passing grade (D or better).

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